Ask HN: How to die on Mars and how likely is that?

1 points by maremmano 5y ago ↗ HN

I was flying over the surface of Mars a few seconds ago (1) and I realized that every single crater on the planet's crust, even the smallest one, is the result of an impact that is certainly lethal to a human being.

So I wondered if anyone had calculated the probability of being killed by a meterorite on the Mars surface and also from other, not mundane, causes that are not so probable on earth.

(1) https://mars26.com/#heading=26.877708648601967&latitude=-22.833890054814468&longitude=-97.93565486593555&tilt=76.82362603168555&zoom=10.59641038177955

3 comments

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msvajger 5y ago ↗

Negligible, compared to the odds of you dying from suffocation, dehydration, starvation, hypothermia, radiation...

martyvis 5y ago ↗

We have had a number of rovers there for a number of years. Certainly I haven't heard of them being hit. I can't see why there would be a concern of meteorites on Mars

RazvanS 5y ago ↗

What you see there is the result of impacts over many/many years. A human lifespan is just a blip on that scale. And Mars surface is huge compared to that of a human.

So chances are slim-to-none.